The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has forwarded over N263 million to Kwara State Government said to have been recovered from some officials of the previous administration.
Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq received the fund, N263,327,800, on Tuesday, saying the money would go into funding social investment programme.
This brings the looted funds so far handed to the new administration to about N373 million, although the total recoveries by the Kwara office of the EFCC in the past one year are in excess of N8 billion worth of assets and cash.
Last year, the EFCC handed over N111 million to the state government.
Mr AbdulRazaq commended the anti-graft body for the recovery and the handing over of the looted funds.
“We are quite excited for getting this money. This is a huge amount of money to be released to us at this time. It is mind-boggling that the situation has come to this,” AbdulRazaq said at a brief ceremony where the EFCC Ilorin zonal head, Isyaku Sharu, handed him the money.
“Anytime arrest is made, some persons would rain abuses on the EFCC and even the state government but the money keeps coming in. Yet they claim nothing was stolen.
“We thank the EFCC. So far, we have got over N300m and it is a continuous exercise. On our part, we will be judicious in utilising the fund. We will always remember that one day, we will leave this position we are today and we will be made accountable too. That is why we have to be responsible in what we do now.”
AbdulRazaq said N111 million earlier released to the state formed the seed money for the social security programme now underway for the benefits of the poorest of the poor in Kwara.
“The presence of the EFCC here makes everybody to sit up and being responsible and brought about change in perception, dynamism and thinking of the civil service and the entire citizens. We must all come together to kill corruption,” he said.
AbdulRazaq also said Kwara was currently paying N35 million monthly to the Federal Government because the former administration collected N2 billion loan for small businesses but mismanaged the money.
Mr Sharu said the latest recoveries were majorly from the money looted from the Kwara State Internal Revenue Service (KWIRS) and local government funds by some former government officials.
“These alleged looters siphoned from Kwara State Internal Revenue Service (KWIRS) and 16 local government areas,” he said.
“About N5 billion was allegedly siphoned from KWIRS and shared in the ratio of 30/70 by some notable individuals in the state through their cronies.”
He noted that the zonal office has secured 48 convictions and recovered at least N8.5 billion worth of assets and money.
